William
Staffordís "Traveling through the Dark" may describe a common event,
but the tacit meaning of the poem reduces the subjects to mere symbols.
"Traveling through the Dark" contains a theme that shows that
technology and mankind are killing off nature. The unborn fawn in the second
stanza and the car in the third stanza are just two of several symbols that
Stafford used to reinforce the theme of the poem. In addition to the symbols,
"Traveling through the Dark" contains vibrant images that accent the
thought of technology pressing man to repulse Mother Nature and turn to the new
science of technology. The very setting of Staffordís poem adheres to the theme
in such a way that technology aids the speaker in throwing the deer into the
Wilson River canyon. The arrangement of the poem as a whole compliments the
theme of "Traveling trough the Dark"; the four stanzas represent the
struggle between technology and nature while the fifth stanza represents the
quick decisive act at the end of the altercation.

There
are several symbolic elements dispersed throughout "Traveling through the
Dark," all within the last three stanzas of the poem. The first symbol
encountered is in the third stanza; the unborn fawn represents the future of
nature in the world. Although the mother, or nature in present time, has been
killed the fawn still waits "alive, still, never to be born" (11).
The fawn waits in hope that it will live to breathe air, in the hope that the
speaker will save it. However, technology is also competing for the speakerís
attention. The first three lines of the fourth stanza make the idling car into
a mechanized beast that kills nature. Some details about this mechanized beast
are on lines thirteen to fifteen where the car "aimed ahead" (13) its
lights, "purred" (14) its steady, idling engine, and emitting
"warm exhaust turning red" (15)> The third and final symbol is
revealed only in the last stanza. On line seventeen, "I thought hard for
us all" exhibits the fact that the speaker is representative of all mankind.
The speaker represents mankind coming around the curve in the dark, ignorant of
the impending decision; he symbolizes mankind being caught in the struggle
between nature and technology.

Nature
in the form of a dead doe is portrayed as an object worthy of pity while the
mechanical beast of a car causes an unsympathetic, ruthless image to transpire
in the readerís mind. Among the various descriptions relating to the dead doe,
the most conspicuous is of her being "large in the belly" (8). "The
heap, a doe" (6) describes the speakerís first impression of the recent
killing. Aside form those two images, the other description of the doe
correlates to the sense of touch; the speaker notices that that the doeís
"side was warm" (10) after brushing finger against fur. Stafford
describes the car with regards to three of the bodyís five senses. The car is
described as having its lights "lowered" (13) or dimmed, casting the
scene in shadows. The steady purring emitted from the engine appeals to the speakerís
sense of hearing. "Warm exhaust" (16) caresses the speaker; it
stimulates the speakerís sense of touch.

The
conflict occurs only because technology exists. It is as if technology has
tasted blood, and like a crazed beast wants only more blood, the blood of Mother
Nature. It was a car the killed the pregnant doe in the first place. The reason
the speaker found the doe while "traveling through the dark" (1) was
the carís headlights. The car, which represented technology, exposed nature as
it exists in the present: dead by the side of the road, killed by a car.
However, Mother Nature had an ace up her sleeve in the form of an unborn fawn,
which the speaker had but to deliver instead of discarding the dead heap to
allow nature to continue its course. There is a type of tension as the speaker
decides between nature and technology. The speaker "could hear the
wilderness listen" (16); all eyes were watching the decision maker.

All
eyes watch as the quarrel between technology and nature extends even to the
format of the poem. The first four stanzas in the poem each represent an
endeavor by either nature or technology to sway mankind to its side. Nature
takes its turn first; the first stanza describes a scene in which nature is the
main subject. The second stanza aids technology as the nature-representing deer
is discovered dead "by the glow of the tail-light" (5). The third
stanza revives the possibility of nature prevailing over technology by
introducing the unexpected fact that the doe was pregnant. Technology is indisputably
the driving force behind the fourth stanza with three-quarters of it dedicated
to describing the speakerís car. The fifth stanza is the ending moment of the
dispute. The sudden chance from four-line stanzas to a two-line stanza
contributes to the abrupt feeling when technology overwhelms nature in the
struggle for domination over mankind.

William
Stafford uses different techniques to convey the theme of technology gaining
control over mankind and turning against nature in his poem "Traveling
through the dark." Among the strategies used, symbolism is definitely the
most significant and most obvious. However, the form or structure of the poem
along with vivid imagery and the setting support the theme very well and
compliment the strong use of symbols. Each element has its own purpose and each
presents itself best in different parts of the poem. William Staffordís
"Traveling through the Dark" describes the rise in importance of
technology and the fall of nature in society.